Conor McGregor will face Eddie Alvarez - not Jose Aldo - in his next fight, as he goes in search of history at UFC 205 on November 12th.
McGregor will look to become the first man to hold two world title belts in two different UFC weight divisions. Something he had set out to do earlier this year - before then-champion Rafael dos Anjos pulled out of their UFC 196 contest with an injury last February. With Nate Diaz stepping in to defeat the Irishman, only for McGregor to have his revenge in last month's rematch.
So eight months later and the Crumlin native finally gets his tilt at history. He will be the main attraction at Madison Square Garden, New York City, in six weeks’ time. Fighting the American who so impressively knocked out dos Anjos for his lightweight belt last July.
"This card has three world title fights and is the best card in UFC history," UFC president Dana White announced on ESPN.
“This is the fight the fans wanted and I’m excited that our very first event at Madison Square Garden will be headlined by Eddie Alvarez defending the lightweight title against Conor McGregor.”
White had previously said that McGregor would have to relinquish his featherweight belt unless his next fight was to be a rematch against José Aldo. But that has not materialised and he will go into UFC 205 as the featherweight champion.
This event will be the first UFC event hosted in New York City, after the longtime professional MMA ban was revoked in March.
New York first banned professional MMA bouts in 1997, when the sport was unregulated by state athletic commissions and before unified rules were implemented. It was the last remaining state in the union with a ban in place.
